Even if the Mets go on to sweep this road trip at Houston and Pittsburgh, which is no sure thing considering they have yet to win a road series against a National League opponent this season, the Mets might barely make a dent in the division or wild-card standings.

So what exactly was going on with Ike Davis, Josh Thole, Fernando Martinez and Ruben Tejada sitting Monday. Furthermore, after Jeff Francoeur went 1-for-3 with a triple in the series-opening 3-1 win against the Houston Astros, Jerry Manuel pledged Frenchy would start again Tuesday.

Granted, the younger players are struggling. And at least sitting the lefty-hitters Thole and Martinez against southpaw Wandy Rodriguez was consistent with original plans.

But the Mets would appear best served acknowledging they're now in development mode for 2011. Or, at the very least, in the mode of gauging what the organization has in young talent for 2011 so that it's clear what needs to be pursued via free agency this winter.

So what gives?

"With Ike, he's struggling a little bit," Manuel said about Davis, who walked as a pinch hitter Monday, but who was 2-for-his-last-19 entering the game. "It's different when you're swinging well and you'd like to keep him in there. And there's sometimes when a left-on-left, sometimes that can get you back. I remember [Carlos] Delgado, he loved to play against lefties because he felt it got him back on track. But as a young player, I don't know if he would say that, or have that type of history."

Still, if Davis is going to face lefties next year when the games arguably are more meaningful, why not now? Davis has now sat last Wednesday against Rockies southpaw Jeff Francis, Friday against Phillies southpaw Cole Hamels and Monday against Rodriguez.

"He will," Manuel said about playing Davis against left-handers. "Again, you have to be careful when you make that choice for him. You don't want to keep him going down a path of not having success. When you bring in young players, if they're on a downward spiral, you want to stop that as much as you can. If he's going good, you give him the opportunity to face a lefty. He might get a couple of hits or he might go 0-for, but it's not detrimental to his success for long term."